The Missouri Development Finance Board has voted in favor of awarding $17 million in state and local tax incentives to help fund the $100 million first phase of the Cardinal’s mixed-use Ballpark Village project. The state of Missouri is expected to contribute around 25 percent of the bonds.

William DeWitt III, president of the Cardinals, said: “Today is a significant milestone in a long journey to make Ballpark Village a reality.”

The major league baseball team and their development partner, Cordish Companies, plan to complete the first phase of the project by Opening Day 2014. Chase Martin, development director of the Cordish Companies stated, “we are grateful for the consistent support we have received from city and state leaders. Ballpark Village will be worth the wait as it will be one of the premiere entertainment developments in the United States.”

The first phase of the project, expected to create over 750 construction and more than 430 permanent jobs, includes the construction of 100,000 square feet of retail and entertainment space along Clark Street, next to Busch Stadium. The project will also incorporate streets, parking and site infrastructure to support future phases. The entire $700 million mixed-use project will stretch over seven blocks.

The Cardinals venue, called Cardinals Nation, will anchor the first phase. With a total of over 30,000 square feet on three levels, Cardinals Nation will include a two-story restaurant, a 300-plus seat seating deck with views into Busch Stadium and a Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum. A second construction will house a two-story, 20,000-square-foot Anheuser-Busch venue with a festive rooftop party deck, which will also offer views into Busch Stadium. The two signature structures will be united by a retractable glass canopy covering the event space, dubbed as the “Live at Ballpark Village!”

The Cardinals began their investment in downtown St. Louis with the opening of the privately financed $411 million Busch Stadium in 2006. The master-planned Ballpark Village will be a mixed-use retail, entertainment, office and residential district developed in partnership by the St. Louis Cardinals and Cordish Companies, the developer behind the Kansas City Power & Light District.